Electret articles and filters with increased oily mist resistance

ABSTRACT

Novel electret articles containing a polymer and a performance-enhancing additive can be identified by their thermally stimulated conductivity characteristics or their filtration properties. Electret articles such as nonwoven filter webs and respirators exhibit superior oily mist loading performance, low penetration and a small pressure drop.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention pertains to electret articles, electret filters,respirators that employ electret filters, and the use of electretfilters in removing particles from a gas, especially removing aerosolsfrom air. This invention is especially concerned with electret filtersthat have improved properties such as electret stability in the presenceof oily mists (i.e., liquid aerosols).

BACKGROUND

Scientists and engineers have long sought to improve filtrationperformance of air filters. Some of the most effective air filters useelectret articles. Electret articles exhibit a persistent orquasi-permanent electrical charge. See G. M. Sessler, Electrets,Springer Verlag, New York, 1987. Researchers have expended considerableefforts to improve the properties of electret articles for use infilters. Despite extensive research directed toward producing improvedelectret articles, the effects of processing variables are not wellunderstood, and, in general, the effects of varying processingconditions are difficult if not impossible to predict.

Electret articles have special property requirements such as chargestability, loading performance, resistance to moisture and oil exposure,et cetera, that can be significantly affected by processing steps thatwould be generally innocuous or beneficial for nonwoven fabrics andfabric-like materials. Thus, in the absence of extensive empirical data,it is often very difficult to understand the effects that a particularprocessing step (for example quenching) might or might not have on theresulting product's electret properties.

One method that has been reported to improve electret filter performanceis blending a performance-enhancing additive into a polymer that is usedto form electret fibers. For example, Jones et al. in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,411,576 and 5,472,481 disclose electret filters that are made byextruding a blend of polymer and a melt-processable fluorochemical toform a microfibrous web that is subsequently annealed and coronatreated. Lifshutz et al. in WO 96/26783 (corresponding to U.S. Pat. No.5,645,627) report electret filters that are made by extruding a blend ofpolymer and a fatty acid amide or a fluorochemical oxazolidinonefluorochemical to form a microfibrous web that is subsequently annealedand corona treated.

Other techniques have been reported which improve an electret article'scharge properties. For example, Klaase et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,588,537report using corona treatment to inject charge into an electret filter.Angadjivand et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,496,507 found that impinging waterdroplets onto a nonwoven microfiber web imparted a charge to the web,and Rousseau et al. in WO 97/07272 disclose electret filters that aremade by extruding blends of a polymer and a fluorochemical or organictriazine compound to form a microfibrous web that is subsequentlyimpinged with water droplets to impart charge and thereby improve thehydrocharged web's filtration performance.

Matsuura et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,256,176 disclose a process of makingstable electrets by exposing an electret to alternating cycles ofapplying electric charges and subsequently heating the article. Matsuuraet al. do not disclose electrets having additives that enhance oily mistloading performance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention provides an electret article containing a polymer and aperformance-enhancing additive (other ingredients may also be added asdescribed below). The electret article can, for example, be in the formof a fiber or film, or it may be in the form of a nonwoven web,especially when used as a filter. The inventors discovered that lowcrystallinity compositions containing a polymer and aperformance-enhancing additive are particularly valuable because theycan be converted to electret filters that have superior properties. Asdescribed below, the low crystallinity compositions can be made byintroducing a quenching step during processing.

Quenching reduces a material's order (e.g. crystallinity) as compared tothe material's order without the quenching process. The quenching stepoccurs concurrently with or shortly after converting a molten materialinto a desired shape. Usually the material is shaped by being extrudedthrough a die orifice and quenched (typically by applying a coolingfluid to the extrudate) immediately after it exits the orifice.

The invention also provides a unique electret article containing apolymer and a performance-enhancing additive that may be characterizedby certain features in a Thermally Stimulated Discharge Current (TSDC)spectrum. Electret filters incorporating the electret articlesexhibiting these unique TSDC spectral features can exhibit surprisinglysuperior filtration performance.

The invention includes articles that incorporate the electret articles,and also includes methods of removing particulate solid or liquidaerosol from a gas using the inventive electret articles.

The invention further provides electret filters that exhibit superiorproperties not achieved in similarly constructed filters that do not usethe inventive electret articles. These filters contain fibers made froma blend of polymer and performance-enhancing additive and they exhibitsuperior dioctylphthalate (DOP) liquid aerosol loading performance. DOPliquid aerosol loading performance is defined in relation to particulartests in the Examples section. Preferred filters exhibit enhanced oilymist loading performance and decreased penetration of aerosols orparticulates while at the same time exhibiting a small pressure dropacross the filter.

The present invention can provide numerous advantages over knownelectret filters including enhanced oily mist aerosol loadingperformance, charge stability in the presence of liquid aerosol, anddecreased penetration of aerosols or particulates with a small pressuredrop across the filter.

Electret articles of the present invention may find use in numerousfiltration applications, including respirators such as face masks, homeand industrial air-conditioners, furnaces, air cleaners, vacuumcleaners, medical and air line filters, and air cleaning systems invehicles and in electronic equipment such as computers and disk drives.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a flow chart illustrating a process for manufacturing electretfilter media according to the invention.

FIG. 2 shows a plot of the “minimum at challenge” (i.e. the mass, inmilligrams (mg), of dioctylphthalate (DOP) which has been incident on afilter web at the point where the DOP Percent Penetration reaches aminimum value, hereinafter “Min@Chl”) of samples cut from a nonquenched,annealed electret filter vs. the crystallinity index of the samplebefore annealing. As explained in detail in the Examples section, thisdata was obtained by exposing the filter webs to a DOP liquid aerosol inan instrument that measures the concentration of DOP liquid aerosolupstream and downstream to the filter. The Percent Penetration iscalculated by dividing the aerosol concentration downstream by theconcentration upstream and multiplying by 100.

FIG. 3 shows a plot of the Min@Chl of samples cut from a nonquenched,annealed electret filter vs. the crystallinity index of the samplesbefore annealing.

FIG. 4 shows a plot of the Min@Chl of samples cut from a nonquenched,annealed electret filter vs. the crystallinity index of the samplebefore annealing.

FIG. 5 shows a plot of the Min@Chl of samples cut from quenched andnonquenched, annealed electret filters vs. the crystallinity index ofthe samples before annealing.

FIG. 6 shows a plot of the Min@Chl of samples cut from quenched andnonquenched, annealed electret filters vs. the crystallinity index ofthe samples before annealing.

FIG. 7 shows a plot of the Min@Chl of samples cut from quenched andnonquenched, annealed electret filters vs. the crystallinity index ofthe samples before annealing.

FIG. 8 shows a plot of the Min@Chl of samples cut from quenched andnonquenched, annealed electret filters vs. the crystallinity index ofthe samples before annealing.

FIG. 9 shows a plot of the Min@Chl of samples cut from quenched andnonquenched, annealed electret filters vs. the crystallinity index ofthe samples before annealing.

FIG. 10 shows a respirator or filtering face mask 10 incorporating anelectret filter of the invention.

FIG. 11 shows a cross sectional view of the respirator body 17.

FIG. 12 shows a thermally stimulated discharge current (TSDC) spectrumof uncharged polymer and performance-enhancing additive containing websthat have been poled in an electric field of 2.5 kilovolts permillimeter (kV/mm) at 100° C. for 1 minute. The webs were produced usingthe following four processing conditions: a) quenched, unannealed, b)unquenched, unannealed, c) quenched, annealed, and d) unquenched,annealed.

FIG. 13a shows a plot of the crystallinity index of 6 unannealed anduncharged polymer and performance-enhancing additive containing websamples vs. the charge density of the samples after annealing (withoutcharging) that have been poled in an electric field of 2.5 kilovolts permillimeter (kV/mm) at 100° C. for 1 minute.

FIG. 13b shows a plot of the DOP loading performance (in Min@Chl) of 6annealed and charged polymer and performance-enhancing additivecontaining web samples vs. charge density of the samples after annealing(without charging) that have been poled in an electric field of 2.5kilovolts per millimeter (kV/mm) at 100° C. for 1 minute.

FIG. 14 shows TSDC spectra of annealed and corona charged, unpoledpolymer without performance-enhancing additive containing webs. Samplesa and b were quenched during processing while samples a′ and b′ were notquenched. Side A refers to the side of the web contacting the upperelectrode when a positive current is discharged while side B refers tothe opposite side of the web that, when contacting the upper electrode,discharges a negative current.

FIG. 15 shows TSDC spectra of annealed and corona charged, unpoledpolymer and performance-enhancing additive containing webs. Samples aand b were quenched during processing while samples a′ and b′ were notquenched. Side A refers to the same side of the web as side A in FIG. 14with respect to contact to the upper electrode, and side B refers to theopposite side of the web.

FIG. 16a shows TSDC spectra of annealed and corona charged, quenchedpolymer and performance-enhancing additive containing webs that havebeen poled in an electric field of 2.5 kV/mm at 100° C. for a) 1 minute,b) 5 minutes, c) 10 minutes and d) 15 minutes.

FIG. 16b shows TSDC spectra of annealed and corona charged, unquenchedpolymer and performance-enhancing additive containing webs that havebeen poled in an electric field of 2.5 kV/mm at 100° C. for a′) 1minute, b′) 5 minutes, c′) 10 minutes and d′) 15 minutes.

FIG. 17 shows a plot of the charge density vs. poling time forunquenched (solid line) and quenched (dotted line) annealed and coronacharged polymer and performance-enhancing additive containing webs.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Electret articles of the invention contain a polymer and aperformance-enhancing additive. The polymer can be a nonconductivethermoplastic resin, that is, a resin having a resistivity greater than10¹⁴ ohm·cm, more preferably 10¹⁶ ohm.cm. The polymer should have thecapability of possessing a non-transitory or long-lived trapped charge.The polymer can be a homopolymer, copolymer or polymer blend. Asreported by Klaase et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,588,537, preferred polymersinclude polypropylene, poly(4-methyl-1-pentene), linear low densitypolyethylene, polystyrene, polycarbonate and polyester. The majorcomponent of the polymer is preferably polypropylene because ofpolypropylene's high resistivity, ability to form melt-blown fibers withdiameters useful for air filtration, satisfactory charge stability,hydrophobicity, and resistance to humidity. On the other hand,polypropylene is not typically oleophobic. The electret articles of theinvention preferably contain about 90 to 99.8 weight percent polymer;more preferably about 95 to 99.5 weight percent; and most preferablyabout 98 to 99 weight percent, based on the weight of the article.

Performance-enhancing additives, as defined in the present invention,are those additives that enhance the oily aerosol filtering ability ofthe electret article after it has been formed into an electret filter.Oily aerosol filtering ability is measured by the DOP loading testsdescribed in the Examples section. Particular performance-enhancingadditives include those described by Jones et al., U.S. Pat. No.5,472,481 and Rousseau et al., WO 97/07272. The performance-enhancingadditives include fluorochemical additives such as fluorochemicaloxazolidinones as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,052 (Crater etal.), fluorochemical piperazines and stearate esters ofperfluoroalcohols. In view of their demonstrated efficacy in improvingelectret properties, the performance-enhancing additive is preferably afluorochemical, more preferably a fluorochemical oxazolidinone.Preferably the fluorochemical has a melting point above the meltingpoint of the polymer and below the extrusion temperature. For processingconsiderations, when using polypropylene, the fluorochemicals preferablyhave a melting point above 160° C. and more preferably a melting pointof 160° C. to 290° C. Particularly preferred fluorochemical additivesinclude Additives A, B and C of U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,576 having therespective structures,

The electret article of the invention preferably contains about 0.2 to10 weight percent performance-enhancing additive; more preferably about0.5 to 5.0 weight percent; and most preferably about 1.0 to 2.0 weightpercent, based on the weight of the article.

The polymer and performance-enhancing additive can be blended as solidsbefore melting them, but the components are preferably melted separatelyand blended together as liquids. Alternatively, the fluorochemicaladditive and a portion of the polymer can be mixed as solids and meltedto form a relatively fluorochemical-rich molten blend that issubsequently combined with the nonfluorochemical-containing polymer.

The molten blend is then shaped into a desired form such as a film orfiber. Typically the molten blend is shaped by extruding through a die,but in less preferred embodiments the blend can be shaped by alternativeprocesses such as drawing in an electrostatic field (see, for example,Y. Trouilhet, “New Method of Manufacturing Nonwovens By ElectrostaticLaying,” in Index 81 Congress Papers, Advances In Web Forming, EuropeanDisposables And Nonwovens Association, Amsterdam, May 5-7, 1981. Apreferred extrusion process uses two extruders, in this process about 10to about 20 weight percent fluorochemical additive and about 80 to about90 weight percent polymer are blended in a first extruder and thisrelatively high fluorochemical-content molten blend is fed into a secondextruder with molten polymer (not containing a fluorochemical) to form ablend that is extruded through a die orifice. The highfluorochemical-content molten blend is preferably combined with thenon-fluorochemical-containing polymer just before extruding the moltenmaterial through a die. This minimizes the time that the fluorochemicalis exposed to high temperature. The temperature during extrusion shouldbe controlled to provide desired extrudate rheology and avoid thermaldegradation of the fluorochemical. Different extruders typically requiredifferent temperature profiles, and some experimentation may be requiredto optimize extrusion conditions for a particular system. For thepolypropylene/fluorochemical blend the temperature during extrusion ispreferably maintained below about 290° C. to reduce thermal degradationof the fluorochemical. If extruders are used, they are preferably of thetwin screw type for better mixing, and they can be commerciallyavailable extruders such as Werner & Pfleiderer or Berstorff extruders.

The molten blend is preferably extruded through a die, and morepreferably the blend is extruded through a die under melt-blowingconditions. Melt-blowing is known to offer numerous advantages,especially producing nonwoven webs, and articles of the invention can bemade using melt-blowing processes and apparatuses that are well known inthe art. Fiber melt-blowing was initially described by Van Wente,“Superfine Thermoplastic Fibers,” Ind. Eng. Chem., vol. 48, pp. 1342-46,(1956). In general, the melt-blowing in the present invention isconducted using conventional procedures with the modification that thematerial is quenched (cooled) as it exits the die.

Suitable quenching techniques include water spraying, spraying with avolatile liquid, or contacting with chilled air or cryogenic gases suchas carbon dioxide or nitrogen. Typically the cooling fluid (liquid orgas) is sprayed from nozzles located within about 5 centimeters (cm) ofthe die orifices. In the case of materials extruded through a die, thecooling fluid impacts the molten extrudate immediately after it isextruded from the die (and well before material is collected). Forexample, in the case of melt-blown fibers, the molten extrudate must bequenched before being collected in the form of a nonwoven web. Thecooling fluid is preferably water. The water can be tap water but ispreferably distilled or deionized water.

The object of the quenching step is to minimize the polymercrystallization in the resulting article. The inventors discovered thatelectret filters made from quenched materials exhibit unexpectedly goodliquid aerosol filtration performance when subsequently annealed andcharged. The quenching step reduces the polymer's crystalline content ascompared to unquenched polymer extruded under the same conditions. Thequenched material preferably has a low degree of crystallinity asdetermined by x-ray diffraction. Preferably, the polymer in the quenchedmaterial has a crystallinity index less than 0.3, more preferably lessthan 0.25, still more preferably less than 0.2, and still morepreferably less than 0.1, as measured by the ratio of crystalline peakintensity to total scattered intensity over the 6 to 36 degreescattering angle range. Thus, a preferred intermediate composition formaking an electret filter is made by blending and extruding a mixture of90 to 99.8 weight percent organic polymer and 0.2 to 10 weight percentof a performance-enhancing additive; wherein the material is extrudedthrough a die under meltblowing conditions to form fibers that arecollected as a nonwoven web. The fibers are quenched, before beingcollected, by a cooling process such as water spraying, spraying with avolatile liquid, or contacting with chilled air or cryogenic gases suchas carbon dioxide or nitrogen.

After quenching, the material is collected. If the material is in theform of fibers, it can be collected, cut and carded into a nonwoven web.Melt-blown fibers typically can be collected as a nonwoven web on arotating drum or moving belt. Preferably the quenching and collectionsteps are conducted such that there is no excess quenching fluid (ifthere is a residual fluid it is typically water) remaining on thecollected material. Fluid remaining on the collected material may causeproblems with storage and requires additional heating during annealingto drive off the quenching fluid. Thus, collected material preferablycontains less than 1 weight percent quenching fluid, and more preferablycontains no residual quenching fluid.

The quenched material is annealed to increase electrostatic chargestability in the presence of oily mists. Preferably, theperformance-enhancing additive is a substance that presents low energysurfaces such as a fluorochemical, and the annealing step is conductedat a sufficient temperature and for a sufficient time to cause theadditive to diffuse to the interfaces (e.g., the polymer-air interface,and the boundary between crystalline and amorphous phases) of thematerial. Generally, higher annealing temperatures allow shorter times.To obtain desirable properties for the final product, annealing ofpolypropylene materials should be conducted above about 100° C.Preferably, annealing is conducted from about 130 to 155° C. for about 2to 20 minutes; more preferably from about 140 to 150° C. for about 2 to10 minutes; and still more preferably about 150° C. for about 4.5minutes. Annealing should be conducted under conditions that do notsubstantially degrade the structure of the web. For polypropylene webs,annealing temperatures substantially above about 155° C. may beundesirable because the material can be damaged.

Webs that have not been annealed generally do not exhibit acceptableoily mist loading performance. Unannealed webs typically exhibit aMin@Chl of zero. The inventors hypothesize that the improved performanceof the annealed webs may be due to an increase in interfacial areaand/or an increase in the number of stable charge trapping sites. Thusalternative methods of increasing interfacial area can be used in placeof annealing.

Annealing increases the crystallinity of polymer in the material.Annealing is also known to increase the stiffness and brittleness of thematerial and to decrease elongation, softness and tear resistance.Nonetheless, the decrease in softness and tear resistance is irrelevantsince the goal of the invention is to improve electret filterperformance.

With or without quenching, the annealing step is typically a ratelimiting step in making liquid aerosol resistant electret filter webs.In one embodiment, the web is formed in a melt-blowing process at a rateof about 0.5 to 1.4 lbs./hr/inch of die.

The inventive method further includes the step of electrostaticallycharging the material after it has been quenched. Examples ofelectrostatic charging methods useful in the invention include thosedescribed in U.S. Pat. No. Re. 30,782 (van Turnhout), U.S. Pat. No. Re.31,285 (van Turnhout), U.S. Pat. No. 5,401,446 (Tsai, et al.), U.S. Pat.No. 4,375,718 (Wadsworth et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 4,588,537 (Klaase etal.), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,592,815 (Nakao). The electret materials mayalso be hydrocharged (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,496,507 to Angadjivand etal.). Cut fibers can be tribocharged by rubbing or by shaking withdissimilar fibers (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,850 to Brown et al.).Preferably, the charging process involves subjecting the material to acorona discharge or pulsed high voltage as disclosed in some of theaforementioned patents.

The fibers can be of a sheath-core configuration and, if so, the sheathmust contain the performance-enhancing additive as described in theblends discussed above. Preferably, the extrudate is in the form ofmicrofibers having an effective diameter of about 5 to 30 micrometers(μm), preferably about 6 to 10 μm as calculated according to the methodset forth in Davies, C. N., “The Separation of Airborne Dust andParticulates,” Inst. of Mech. Eng., London, Proceedings 1B, 1952.

Electret articles of the invention can be characterized by TSDC studies.In TSDC a sample is placed between two electrodes, heated at a constantrate, and current discharged from the sample is measured by an ammeter.TSDC is a well known technique. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No.5,256,176, Lavergne et al. “A Review of Thermo-Stimulated Current,” IEEEElectrical Insulation Magazine, vol. 9, no. 2, 5-21, 1993, and Chen etal. “Analysis of Thermally Stimulated Processes,” Pergamon Press, 1981.The current discharged from the sample is a function of thepolarizability and charge trapping of the article being tested. Chargedarticles can be tested directly. Alternatively, charged and unchargedarticles can be first poled in an electric field at an elevatedtemperature and then rapidly cooled below the glass transitiontemperature (T_(g)) of the polymer with the polarizing field on to“freeze in” the induced polarization. The sample is then heated at aconstant rate and the resulting discharged current is measured. In thepolarization process, charge injection, dipole alignment, chargeredistribution or some combination of these may occur.

During a thermally stimulated discharge, charges stored in an electretbecome mobile and are neutralized either at the electrodes or in thebulk sample by recombination with charges of opposite sign. Thisgenerates an external current that shows a number of peaks when recordedas a function of temperature which is plotted on a graph (termed a TSDCspectrum). The shape and location of these peaks depends on chargetrapping energy levels and physical location of trapping sites.

As indicated by many researchers (see, for example, Sessler, ed.,“Electrets,” Springer-Verlag, 1987 and Van Turnhout, “ThermallyStimulated Discharge of Polymer Electrets,” Elsevier ScientificPublishing Co., 1975), electret charges are usually stored in structuralanomalies, such as impurities, defects of the monomeric units, chainirregularities et cetera. The width of a TSDC peak is influenced by thedistribution of charge trapping levels in the electrets. Insemicrystalline polymers, often charges will either accumulate or bedepleted near the amorphous-crystalline interfaces due to the differencein conductivity of the phases (the Maxwell-Wagner effect). Thesetrapping sites are usually associated with different trapping energieswhere a continuous distribution of activation energies will be expectedand the TSDC peaks expected to overlap and merge into a broad peak.

In a series of TSDC measurements described in the Examples section, ithas been surprisingly discovered that various features in the TSDCspectrum correlate with superior oily mist loading performance. The TSDCspectral features correlating with superior performance include thefeatures discussed below as preferred embodiments.

In one preferred embodiment, an intermediate composition for making anelectret filter, the composition comprising a nonwoven web of fibershaving a charge density of at least about 10 microcolombs per metersquared (μC/m²) when tested according to TSDC Test Procedure 1 (as setforth in the Examples section).

In another preferred embodiment an electret article has a TSDC spectrumexhibiting a peak at about 15° C. to 30° C., more preferably about 15°C. to 25° C., below the melting temperature of the article, as measuredby TSDC Test Procedure 2. When the polymer is polypropylene, the TSDCexhibits a peak at about 130 to 140° C.

In yet another preferred embodiment, an electret article having a TSDCspectrum exhibiting a peak having a width at half height of less thanabout 30° C., more preferably a width at half height of less than about25° C., and still more preferably a width at half height of less thanabout 20° C., as measured by TSDC Test Procedure 3. In cases where thepolymer is polypropylene, the narrow peak described above has itsmaximum at about 138 to 142° C.

In another preferred embodiment an electret article exhibits increasingcharge density over 1 to 5 minutes, and/or 5 to 10 minutes, of polingtime, as measured by TSDC Test Procedure 4.

The electret article may be in the form of a fiber and a multitude ofthese fibers may be formed into an electret filter. An electret filtercan take the form of a nonwoven web containing at least some electretfibers combined with a supporting structure. In either case, theelectret article can be combined with some nonelectret material. Forexample, the supporting structure can be nonelectret fibers orsupporting nonelectret, nonwoven webs. The electret filter is preferablya nonwoven electret web containing electrically-charged, melt-blownmicrofibers.

The electret filter webs may also include staple fibers that provide aloftier, less dense web. Methods of incorporating staple fibers in thenonwoven web can be carried out as described U.S. Pat. No. 4,118,531 toHauser. If staple fibers are used, the web preferably contains less than90 weight percent staple fibers, more preferably less than 70 weightpercent. For reasons of simplicity and optimizing performance, theelectret web may in some instances consist essentially of melt-blownfibers and does not contain staple fibers.

The electret filter may further contain sorbent particulates such asalumina or activated carbon. The particulates may be added to the filterto assist in removing gaseous contaminants from an airstream that passesthrough the filter. Such particulate loaded webs are described, forexample, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,971,373 to Braun, U.S. Pat. No. 4,100,324 toAnderson and U.S. Pat. No. 4,429,001 to Kolpin et al. If particulatematerial is added, the web preferably contains less than 80 volumepercent particulate material, more preferably less than 60 volumepercent. In embodiments where the electret filter does not need toremove gaseous contaminants, the filter may contain only melt-blownfibers.

The material used to form the electret filter is desirably substantiallyfree of materials such as antistatic agents that could increaseelectrical conductivity or otherwise interfere with the ability of thearticle to accept and hold electrostatic charge. Additionally, theelectret article should not be subjected to unnecessary treatments suchas exposure to gamma rays, UV irradiation, pyrolysis, oxidation, etc.,that might increase electrical conductivity. Thus, in a preferredembodiment the electret article is made and used without being exposedto gamma irradiation or other ionizing irradiation.

The electret filters made from melt blown fibers typically have a basisweight of about 10 to 500 grams per meter squared (g/m²), morepreferably about 10 to 100 g/m². Filters that are too dense may bedifficult to charge while those that are too light or too thin may befragile or have insufficient filtering ability. For many applicationsthe electret filters are about 0.25 to 20 millimeters (mm) thick, andcommonly about 0.5 to 2 mm thick. Electret filters of these basisweights and thicknesses may be particularly useful in a respirator.

Filters of the invention preferably exhibit an initial DOP penetrationof less than 5% and an average Min@Chl of greater than 200 mg DOP, morepreferably greater than 400 mg DOP, as measured by DOP Filter WebLoading Test Procedure 1 as described in the Examples section. “Average”as is it used in the Tables and Examples is the mean of measurementsmade from 4 to 6 samples cut from equally spaced parts across the filterweb's entire width. For any other set of samples, average is defined asthe mean Min@Chl value of an appropriate number of samples that areselected and load tested using the “t test” as described in Devore,“Probability and Statistics for Engineering and the Sciences,”Brooks/Cole Publishing Co. (1987) to determine a statisticallysignificant average within one standard deviation.

Superior filtration performance is achieved by preferred inventivefilters in which each filter taken separately without averaging(hereinafter, simply termed “each filter”) exhibits a Min@Chl of greaterthan 500 mg DOP, more preferably greater than about 600, and still morepreferably about 800 to 1000 mg DOP. These filters preferably exhibit apressure drop less than 13 mm H₂O, more preferably less than 10 mm H₂O,and still more preferably less than 8 mm H₂O, as measured by the methodof Loading Test Procedure 1 as described in the Examples section.

DOP penetration is typically measured on an instrument known as anAutomated Filter Tester (AFT). An initializing period is required forthe DOP aerosol to reach the filter and for the electronics in the AFTto settle. The initial DOP penetration refers to the % DOP penetratingthe web during the initial exposure, usually 6 to 40 seconds, while thetesting apparatus is equilibrating. The initial DOP penetration is thefirst reading presented by the AFT using the built-in program. Filtersof the present invention have at least a detectable penetration (i.e. apenetration above about 0.001% for the AFT instruments described in theExamples section).

In respirators, the fibrous electret webs may be specially shaped orhoused, for example, in the form of molded or folded half-face masks,filter elements for replaceable cartridges or canisters, or prefilters.

An example of a respirator 10 of the present invention is shown in FIGS.10 and 11. The respirator's mask body 17 can be of curved, hemisphericalshape or may take on other shapes as desired (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos.5,307,796 and 4,827,924). In respirator 10, the electret filter 15 issandwiched between cover web 11 and inner shaping layer 16. Shapinglayer 16 provides structure to the mask 10 and support for filtrationlayer 18. Shaping layer 16 may be located on the inside and/or outsideof filtration layer 18 and can be made, for example, from a nonwoven webof thermally-bondable fibers molded into a cup-shaped configuration. Theshaping layer can be molded in accordance with known procedures (see,e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,307,796). The shaping layer or layers typicallyare made of bicomponent fibers that have a core of a high meltingmaterial such as polyethylene terephthalate surrounded by a sheath oflower melting material so that when heated in a mold, the shaping layerconforms to the shape of the mold and retains this shape when cooled toroom temperature. When pressed together with another layer, such as thefilter layer, the low melting sheath material can also serve to bond thelayers together. To hold the face mask snugly upon the wearer's face,mask body can have straps 12, tie strings, a mask harness, etc. attachedthereto. A pliable soft band 13 of metal such as aluminum can beprovided on mask body 17 to allow it to be shaped to hold the face maskin a desired fitting relationship on the nose of the wearer (see, e.g.,U.S. Pat. No. 5,558,089). Respirators may also have additional featuressuch as additional layers, valves (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,436),molded face pieces, etc. Examples of respirators that can incorporatethe improved electret filters of the present invention include thosedescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,536,440, 4,827,924, 5,325,892, 4,807,6194,886,058 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/079,234.

Respirators of this invention having a surface area of about 180 squarecentimeters (cm²)preferably exhibit a Min@Chl of greater than 400milligrams (mg) DOP, more preferably greater than 600 mg DOP, whentested using the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health(NIOSH) Particulate Filter Penetration Procedure to Test NegativePressure Respirators Against Liquid Particulates (ProcedureAPRS-STP-0051-00, Morgantown W. Va., NIOSH Division of Safety Research,May 31, 1995). The respirators preferably exhibit an initial DOPpenetration of less than 5%. The respirators tested according to thisProcedure preferably exhibit a pressure drop less than 13 mm H₂O, morepreferably less than 10 mm H₂O, and still more preferably less than 8 mmH₂O. Larger surface area respirators are tested according to thisstandard by reducing the exposed surface area to 180 cm². Smallerrespirators are tested according to this standard by adapting a holderfor several respirators that has a total exposed area of about 180 cm².

Filter elements of this invention having a surface area of about 150 cm²preferably exhibit a Min@Chl of greater than 300 mg DOP, more preferablygreater than 450 mg DOP, when tested using NIOSH ProcedureAPRS-STP-0051-00. Filters used as pairs on a respirator are tested usinga single filter of the pair. The filters tested according to thisProcedure preferably exhibit an initial DOP penetration of less than 5%.The filters preferably exhibit a pressure drop less than 13 mm H₂O, morepreferably less than 10 mm H₂O, and still more preferably less than 8 mmH₂O.

Prefilters of this invention having a surface area of about 65 cm²preferably exhibit a Min@Chl of greater than 170 mg DOP, more preferablygreater than 255 mg DOP, when tested using NIOSH ProcedureAPRS-STP-0051-00. Prefilters used as pairs on a respirator are testedusing a single filter of the pair. The prefilters preferably exhibit aninitial DOP penetration of less than 5%. The prefilters tested accordingto this Procedure preferably exhibit a pressure drop less than 17 mmH₂O, more preferably less than 14 mm H₂O, and still more preferably lessthan 12 mm H₂O.

EXAMPLES

General Sample Preparation and Testing

Extrusion of Webs

The following descriptions exemplify certain preferred embodiments of[methods of making] electret articles containing a polymer and aperformance-enhancing additive. The articles in these examples arenonwoven filter webs made from a blend of polypropylene and afluorochemical that is extruded under melt-blowing conditions andcollected to form a blown microfiber (BMF) web. The fluorochemical meltadditive was fed into the throat of a twin screw extruder along withpolypropylene to produce a melt stream that contained about 11 weightpercent fluorochemical. The bulk of the polypropylene was added to thethroat of a second twin screw extruder. In some cases a peroxide wasalso metered in to reduce viscosity. The output of thefluorochemical-containing extruder was pumped into thepolypropylene-containing extruder at a rate such as to make the totaloutput about 1.1 percent by weight fluorochemical melt additive.

The temperature of the melt stream containing the fluorochemical meltadditive was maintained below 290° C. at all points. The web itself wasproduced in a conventional manner similar to that described in VanWente, et al. except that a drilled orifice die was used.

Quenching

Two quenching methods were used and are described below.

Method A

A spray bar containing thirteen individual Flat Fan Nozzles with UnijetSpray Nozzle Tips No. 9501 spaced four inches apart was mounted 0.75inch from the die face and 2.5 inches below the molten polymer streamsexiting the die. Each nozzle was rotated 10° from the cross webdirection so that the fans of water droplets did not interfere with eachother and the water pressure was set to the minimum level that wouldmaintain a uniform spray.

Method B

A Sonic Spray System spray bar with 15 Model No. SDC 035 atomizing spraynozzles, available from Sonic Environmental Corp. of Pennsauken, N.J.,was mounted approximately 7 inches below the center line and about oneinch down stream of the die tip. The air pressure was set at 50 poundsper square inch (psi) and the water pressure was set at 30 psi. Thewater flow meters were, unless otherwise specified, adjusted so thateach nozzle delivered 30 ml/min of water. Each nozzle delivered a coneof water droplets to the molten polymer streams exiting the die.

Annealing

The extruded webs were further treated by passing them through an ovenheated to an average temperature of about 150° C. at a rate such thatthe dwell time in the oven was about 4.5 minutes. This annealing processcauses additional crystallization of the polymer and causes thefluorochemical melt additive to diffuse to the interfaces of the fibers.

Charging

After annealing the webs were further treated by corona charging using ahigh voltage electric field provided between 30 linear cross-web coronasources and a ground electrode with a corona current of 2.6·10⁻³milliamps/cm of corona source length and a residence time of about 15seconds.

Web Specifications

Web thickness was measured according to ASTM D1777-64 using a 230 gweight on a 10 cm diameter disk. Pressure drop can be measured accordingto ASTM F778. Basis weight was calculated from the weight of a 5.25 in.(13.3 cm) diameter disk.

DOP Loading Test

The dioctylphthalate (DOP) loading measurements were performed bymonitoring the penetration of DOP aerosol through a sample duringprolonged exposure to a controlled DOP aerosol. The measurements weremade using an Automated Filter Tester (AFT) model #8110 or #8130(available from TSI Incorporated, St. Paul, Minn.) adapted for DOPaerosol.

The DOP % Penetration is defined to be:

DOP % Penetration=100(DOP Conc. Downstream/DOP Conc. Upstream),

where the concentrations upstream and downstream were measured by lightscattering and the DOP Percent Penetration was calculated automaticallyby the AFT. The DOP aerosol generated by the 8110 and 8130 AFTinstruments was nominally a monodisperse 0.3 micrometers mass mediandiameter having an upstream concentration of 100 milligrams per cubicmeter as measured by a standard filter. The samples tested were alltested with the aerosol ionizer turned off and at a flow rate throughthe filter web sample of 85 liters per minute (LPM).

DOP Filter Web Loading Test Procedure 1

The measurements were made using an AFT model #8110 adapted for DOPaerosol. The extruded web was cut into disks 6.75 inch (17.15 cm) indiameter. Two of the disks were stacked directly on top of each other,and the disks were mounted in a sample holder such that a 6.0 inch (15.2cm) diameter circle was exposed to the aerosol. The face velocity was7.77 centimeter per second (cm/sec).

The samples were weighed before inserting them into a sample holder.Each test was continued until there was a clear trend for increasing DOPPercent Penetration with continued DOP aerosol exposure or at leastuntil an exposure to 200 milligrams of DOP. The DOP Percent Penetrationand corresponding Pressure Drop data were transmitted to an attachedcomputer where they were stored. After the termination of the DOPloading test, the loaded samples were weighed again to monitor theamount of DOP collected on the fibrous web samples. This served as across-check of the DOP exposure extrapolated from the measured DOPconcentration incident on the fibrous web and the measured aerosol flowrate through the web.

The resulting loading data was imported into a spread sheet to calculatethe minimum at challenge (Min@Chl). The Min@Chl is defined to be thetotal DOP challenge or mass of DOP which has been incident (i.e. themass of DOP on and through the sample) on the filter web at the pointwhere the DOP Percent Penetration reaches its minimum value. ThisMin@Chl is used to characterize the web performance against DOP loading,the higher the Min@Chl the better the DOP loading performance.

DOP Filter Web Loading Test Procedure 2

Procedure 2 was the same as 1 except that the samples were cut 5.25 inch(13.34 cm) in diameter and placed in the sample holder leaving a 4.5inch (11.4 cm) diameter circle exposed, and the face velocity was 13.8cm/sec.

In either procedure, the tests can be conducted using equivalent filtertesters. One could also test single layers rather than double layers offilter web if the instantaneous filtration performance of the singlelayer is such that there is a pressure drop of 8 to 20 mm H₂O and adetectable penetration less than 36% DOP penetration as measured with anexposed area of 102.6 cm² at a flow rate of 85 LPM using an AFT modelno. TSI 8110 having the ionizer on. Either procedure includes thetesting of smaller surface area filters by using a sample holder thatwould assemble a filter medium with an equivalent exposed area (i.e.102.6 cm² for Procedure 2)

Determination of Polymer Crystallinity Index

Crystallinity data were collected by use of a Philips vertical x-raydiffractometer, copper Kα radiation and proportional detector registryof the scattered radiation. The diffractometer was fitted with variableentrance slits, fixed receiving slit, and diffracted beam monochromator.The X-ray generator was operated at settings of 45 kV and 35 mA. Stepscans were conducted from 5 to 40 degrees (2θ) using a 0.05 degree stepsize and 5 second count time. Samples were mounted on aluminum holdersusing double coated tape with no backing plate or support used underweb.

The observed scattering data were reduced to x-y pairs of scatteringangle and intensity values and subjected to profile fitting using thedata analysis software Origin™ (available from Microcal Software Inc.,Northhampton Mass.). A gaussian peak shape model was employed todescribe the six alpha-form polypropylene peaks and amorphous peakcontributions. For some data sets, a single amorphous peak did notadequately account for the non-alpha form scattered intensity. In thesecases, additional broad maxima were employed to fully account for theobserved intensity. These broad inflections were primarily due to themesomorphic form of polypropylene (for a discussion of mesomorphicpolypropylene see Krueger et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,931,230 and referencescited therein). The scattering contribution due to the mesomorphic formof polypropylene was combined with the amorphous scatter. Crystallinityindices were calculated as the ratio of crystalline peak area to totalscattered intensity (crystalline+amorphous) within the 6 to 36 degree(2θ) scattering angle range. A value of one represents 100 percentcrystallinity and zero represents no crystallinity.

Thermally Stimulated Discharge Current (TSDC)

The TSDC studies were conducted using a Solomat TSC/RMA model 91000 witha pivot electrode, available from TherMold Partners, L.P., ThermalAnalysis Instruments of Stanford, Conn. Web samples were cut and placedbetween electrodes in the Solomat TSC/RMA. In the Solomat instrument, athermometer is disposed adjacent to, but not touching, the sample. Theweb samples should be optically dense, there should not be visible holesthrough the sample web. The samples should be large enough to completelycover the top contact electrode. Since the electrode is about 7 mm indiameter, the samples were cut larger than 7 mm in diameter. To ensuregood electrical contact with the electrodes, the web samples arecompressed about a factor of 10 in thickness. Air is evacuated from thesample chamber and replaced with helium at a pressure of about 1100.Liquid nitrogen cooling is used.

TSDC Test Procedure 1

An article is poled at 100° C. for 1 minute in an applied electric fieldof 2.5 kilovolts per minute (kV/mm) in the apparatus described above.With the field on, the sample is rapidly cooled (at the maximum rate ofthe instrument) to −50° C. The sample is held at −50° C. for 5 minuteswith the field off, then heated at 3° C./min while the discharge currentis measured. Charge densities can be calculated from each peak of theTSDC spectra by drawing a baseline between the minima on each side of aselected peak and integrating the area under the peak.

TSDC Test Procedure 2

The discharge current of an unpoled article is measured starting from25° C. and heating at a rate of 3° C./min. Two samples from the articleare tested identically except the samples are oriented in oppositedirections when placed between the electrodes. The peak position(s) ismeasured for the article that was oriented to produce a positivedischarge current at temperatures above about 110° C. (e.g., side B inFIG. 15).

The melting temperature of the article is determined by differentialscanning calorimetry (DSC) conducted at a heating rate of 10° C./min,and defined as the peak maximum caused by melting that is observed inthe second DSC heating cycle (i.e. the peak observed after heating toabove the melting temperature, cooling to freeze the article andreheating).

TSDC Test Procedure 3

A sample is studied by the TSDC method of Procedure 2 to determine thecorrect orientation of the sample. The articles are then oriented in theSolomat TSC in the direction that produces a positive discharge currentin the lower temperature peak in Procedure 2. Articles are then testedaccording to Procedure 1 except that each sample is poled at 100° C. foreither 1, 5, 10 or 15 minutes. The value of peak width at half height ofeach peak is calculated by drawing a baseline, based on the curve slopefrom 0 to about 30° C., and measuring the peak width at half height.

TSDC Test Procedure 4

This procedure is identical to procedure 3 except that the chargedensity of the article at each poling time is calculated by drawing abaseline between the minima on each side of a selected peak, or if thereis not a minima on the high temperature side of a peak, where the curvecrosses or is extrapolated to cross zero current, and integrating thearea under the peak.

Comparative Examples 1-3

Examples 1-3 demonstrate that improved loading performance can beachieved by annealing polymer and performance-enhancing additivecontaining compositions having a relatively low crystallinity index.

Example 1

A nonwoven filter web was prepared from Exxon Escorene 3505G, availablefrom Exxon Chemical Company, and the fluorochemical

at a rate of 50 pounds per hour (lb/hr, 23 kilograms per hour (kg/hr))and a melt temperature of 288° C. using a 48 inch (121.9 cm) drilledorifice die. The web had a basis weight of 71 grams per square meter, athickness of 1.3 millimeters (mm) and a pressure drop of 6.6 mm H₂Omeasured at a face velocity of 13.8 cm/s. After annealing and chargingthe web as described above, DOP load testing was performed on 5.25 inch(13.34 cm) diameter two-layer samples taken from six positions acrossthe width of the web. The crystallinity index of the polypropylene wasdetermined for samples cut from the same six positions of the web before(positions 1, 4 and 6) and after annealing (positions 1-6). The loadingdata (in Min@Chl) and crystallinity indices for the six positions aregiven in Table 1, and unannealed crystallinity index vs. Min@Chl valuesfor positions 1, 4 and 6 are plotted in FIG. 2.

TABLE I Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index, Min@Chl PositionUnannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.4  0.57 149 2 — 0.53 83 3 — 0.52 78 4 0.440.59 83 5 — 0.51 150 6 0.31 0.47 340

As shown in the values in Table 1 for positions 1, 4 and 6 and the plotin FIG. 2, there is a correlation between the DOP loading performance(in Min@Ch1) and the crystallinity index of the web before annealing.The lower the crystallinity before annealing, the greater the value ofthe Min@Ch1. On the other hand, as shown in Table 1, there is not acorrelation between the crystallinity index of the web after annealingand the DOP loading performance (in Min@Ch1).

Example 2

BMF web was prepared and treated as described in Example 1. The web hada basis weight of 74 grams per square meter, a thickness of 1.4 mm and apressure drop of 7.0 mm H₂O measured at a face velocity of 13.8 cm/s.The web was DOP load tested and analyzed for crystallinity index as inExample 1 and the resulting data are given in Table 2 and FIG. 3.

TABLE 2 Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index, Min@Chl PositionUnannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.34 0.64 182 2 0.36 0.66 166 3 0.45 0.66 874 0.45 0.64 59 5 0.43 0.67 117 6 0.44 0.67 178

Again, the values in Table 2 and FIG. 3 show the general trend thatlower crystallinity indices of the unannealed composition correlate withbetter loading performance while no correlation is observed for theannealed filters.

Example 3

BMF web was prepared and treated as described in Example 1 except thatFina 3860 polypropylene resin, available from Fina Oil and ChemicalCompany, was used and a peroxide concentrate containing2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(tert-butylperoxy)hexane was co-fed into the extruderto control the polypropylene's melt rheology and the physical parametersof the melt blown web. The web had a basis weight of 73 grams per squaremeter, a thickness of 1.4 mm and a pressure drop of 7.0 mm H₂O measuredat 85 liters per minute. The web was load tested and analyzed forcrystallinity index as in Example 1 and the resulting data are presentedin Table 3 and FIG. 4.

TABLE 3 Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index, Min@Chl PositionUnannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.38 0.52 66 2 0.42 0.54 49 3 0.44 0.54 62 40.39 0.53 45 5 0.33 0.53 119  6 0.32 0.53 98

Again, the values in Table 3 and FIG. 4 show the general trend thatlower crystallinity indices of the unannealed composition correlate withbetter loading performance while no correlation is observed for theannealed filters.

Examples 4-8

Examples 4-8 illustrate that quenching or low crystallinity of theunannealed fibers (i.e. the intermediate composition) correlate withsuperior oily mist loading properties of the annealed electret filterwebs.

Example 4

BMF web was prepared and treated as in Example 1. The web had a basisweight of 69 grams per square meter, a thickness of 1.3 mm and apressure drop of 6.2 mm H₂O measured at a face velocity of 13.8 cm/s.After sufficient web was collected for further processing and testing,the extrudate was sprayed with water using Method A described above.Water purified by reverse osmosis and deionization was used. In thisexperiment the spray bar only spanned about ⅔ the width of the die. Thecollector was moved in from about 12 to about 8 inches to maintain thedesired web parameters. The webs were DOP load tested and analyzed forcrystallinity index as in Example 1, and the resulting data are given inTables 4A and 4B and FIG. 5.

TABLE 4A Without Quenching, Comparative Examples CrystallinityCrystallinity Index, Index, Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 10.36 0.62 84 2 0.39 0.6  97 3 0.36 0.63 73 4 0.35 0.63 67 5 0.37 0.62119  6 0.37 0.64 200 

TABLE 4B With Quenching Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index,Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.31 0.61 198 2 0.19 0.6 3443 0.24 0.6 106 4 0.19 0.6 343

The data in Tables 4A and 4B show that quenching reduces thecrystallinity index of the extruded fibers. Annealing the lowcrystallinity index composition improves the loading performance of theannealed and charged filter web. The data further shows that annealingcompositions having a crystallinity index below about 0.3 results inelectret filters having superior loading performance. More particularly,annealing webs having a crystallinity index below about 0.3 results infilters having an average Min@Ch1 of greater than 200 mg while annealingwebs having a crystallinity index above about 0.3 results in filtershaving an average Min@Ch1 of less than 200 mg.

Example 5

BMF web was prepared and treated as in Example 1 except that theextrusion rate was 100 pounds per hour and peroxide was added as inExample 3 to control the melt rheology of the polypropylene and thephysical parameters of the melt blown web. The web had a basis weight of73 grams per square meter, a thickness of 1.3 mm and a pressure drop of6.6 mm H₂O measured at a face velocity of 13.8 cm/s. After sufficientweb was collected for further processing and testing (see examples inTable 5A) the extrudate was sprayed with water using Method B describedabove. The spray bar spanned the entire web which had a basis weight of74 grams per square meter, a thickness of 1.3 mm and a pressure drop of6.2 mm H₂O measured at 85 liters per minute. The collector was moved infrom 12 to 11 inches to maintain web parameters. Unpurified tap waterwas used. The webs were DOP load tested and analyzed for crystallinityindex as in Example 1 except that 6.75 inch (17.15 cm) circles were usedfor load testing and the resulting data are given in Tables 5A and 5Band FIG. 6.

TABLE 5A Without Quenching, Comparative Crystallinity CrystallinityIndex, Index, Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.37 0.63 68 20.38 0.64 78 3 0.41 0.64 90 4 0.38 0.62 — 5 0.34 0.62 139 

TABLE 5B With Quenching Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index,Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.1 0.63 539 2 0.1 0.58 1943 0.1 0.61 289 4 0.1 0.61 595 5 0.28 0.62 256

As in Example 4 the data in Tables 5A and 5B show that quenching reducesthe crystallinity index of the unannealed web and improves the loadingperformance of the annealed and charged web. The data further shows thatannealing webs having a crystallinity index below about 0.3 results infilters having an average Min@Ch1 of greater than 200 mg while annealingwebs having a crystallinity index above about 0.3 results in filtershaving an average Min@Ch1 of less than 200 mg. The data also show thatlower crystallinity compositions, such as having a crystallinity indexof about 0.1 can lead to further improved loading performance. Forexample, some electret filters can have a Min@Ch1 of greater than 500mg.

Example 6

BMF web was prepared and treated as described in Example 1. The web hada basis weight of 73 grams per square meter, a thickness of 1.3 mm and apressure drop of 7.0 mm H₂O measured at a face velocity of 13.8 cm/s.After sufficient web was collected for further processing and testingthe extrudate was sprayed with water as in Example 5 using Method Bdescribed above. The collector was moved in from 10 to 8.5 inches tomaintain web parameters. The water sprayed web had a basis weight of 71grams per square meter, a thickness of 1.4 mm and a pressure drop of 6.6mm H₂O measured at 85 liters per minute. The webs were DOP load testedand analyzed for crystallinity index as in Example 5 and the resultingdata are given in Tables 6A and 6B and FIG. 7.

TABLE 6A Without Quenching, Comparative Crystallinity CrystallinityIndex, Index, Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.42 0.62 1392 0.41 0.63 121 3 0.4 0.62 162 4 0.37 0.62 162 5 0.3 0.65 165

TABLE 6B With Quenching Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index,Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.31 0.62 537 2 0.16 0.61875 3 0.21 0.62 403 4 0.21 0.6 544 5 0.28 0.61 393

As in Examples 4-7, the data in Tables 6A and 6B show that quenchingreduces the crystallinity index of the unannealed web and improves theloading performance of the annealed and charged web. The data furthershows that annealing webs having a crystallinity index below about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of greater than 200 mgwhile annealing webs having a crystallinity index above about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of less than 200 mg. Thedata also show that some electret filters made from the quenchedmaterials can have a Min@Ch1 of greater than 500 mg and some with aMin@Ch1 of greater than 800 mg.

Example 7

BMF webs were made and treated as in Example 6 with and without waterspray using Method B. For this example the water was purified by reverseosmosis and deionization. The web specifications were similar to thosein Example 6. The webs were load tested and analyzed for crystallinityindex as in Example 6 and the resulting data are given in Tables 7A and7B and FIG. 8.

TABLE 7A Without Water Spray Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index,Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.42 0.6 120 2 0.46 0.62 1223 0.41 0.62  79 4 0.34 0.63 153 5 0.34 0.62 189

TABLE 7B With Water Spray Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index,Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.32 0.62 502 2 0.1 0.59 8993 0.12 0.61 702 4 0.22 0.61 911 5 0.34 0.6 219

As in Examples 4-6, the data in Tables 7A and 7B show that quenchingreduces the crystallinity index of the unannealed web and improves theloading performance of the annealed and charged web. The data furthershows that annealing webs having a crystallinity index below about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of greater than 200 mgwhile annealing webs having a crystallinity index above about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of less than 200 mg. Thedata also show that some electret filters made from the quenchedmaterials can have a Min@Ch1 of greater than 500 mg and some with aMin@Ch1 of greater than 800 mg.

Example 8

BME webs were made and treated as in Example 7 with and without waterspray using Method B. The webs had web specifications similar to thosein Example 7. The webs were load tested and analyzed for crystallinityindex as in the previous examples and the resulting data are given inTables 8A and 8B and FIG. 9.

TABLE 8A Without Quenching, Comparative Crystallinity CrystallinityIndex, Index Min@Chl Position Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.41 0.6 130 20.39 0.62  90 3 0.41 0.63 135 4 0.33 0.63 219 5 0.35 0.55 415

TABLE 8B With Quenching Crystallinity Crystallinity Index, Index Min@ChlPosition Unannealed Annealed (mg) 1 0.11 0.55 421 2 0.13 0.55 312 3 0.110.55 368 4 0.11 0.55 583 5 0.12 0.55 456

As in Examples 4-7, the data in Tables 8A and 8B show that quenchingreduces the crystallinity index of the unannealed web and improves theloading performance of the annealed and charged web. The data furthershows that annealing webs having a crystallinity index below about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of greater than 200 mgwhile annealing webs having a crystallinity index above about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of less than 200 mg. Thedata also show that some electret filters made from the quenchedmaterials can have a Min@Ch1 of greater than 500 mg.

Tables 9A and 9B show average Min@Ch1 data for Examples 4-8 forunquenched and quenched samples.

TABLE 9A Averaged Min@Chl Data (mg)-Unquenched, Comparative AverageExample Minimum Min@Chl Maximum Min@Chl Min@Chl 4 66 200 106 5 68 138 93 6 121  165 150 7 79 189 133 8 90 415 198

TABLE 9B Averaged Min@Chl Data (mg)-Quenched Average Example MinimumMin@Chl Maximum Min@Chl Min@Chl 4 106 344 248 5 194 594 375 6 392 875550 7 219 899 647 8 312 583 428

The averaged data in Tables 9A and 9B, combined with the crystallinityvalues shown in the previous Tables demonstrate that quenching canreduce the crystallinity index of the unannealed web below about 0.3 andfurther that annealing webs having a crystallinity index below about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of greater than 200 mgwhile annealing webs having a crystallinity index above about 0.3results in filters having an average Min@Ch1 of less than 200 mg.

Examples 9 and 10

Examples 9 and 10 show that the addition of a performance-enhancingadditive causes a strong signal in the TSDC spectrum. A nonwoven web wasprepared as described in Example 4 (including quenching). A secondsample was prepared identically except without a performance-enhancingadditive. Both web samples were studied by the method of TSDC TestProcedure 1. The sample containing the performance-enhancing additiveshowed a significant discharge peak at about 110° C. In comparison, theweb without a performance-enhancing additive did not show a significantpeak. This observation suggests that the discharge current generated bythe sample containing the performance-enhancing additive is due todepolarization of the performance-enhancing additive upon heating. Theperformance-enhancing additive is believed to be polarized in the polingstep.

Examples 11-15

Examples 11-15 show that quenched webs, after poling, have a highercharge density than unquenched webs. Sample webs a (quenched,unannealed) and c (quenched, annealed) were the same as those describedin Example 4, position 4 (except without corona charging). Sample b(unquenched, unannealed) was the same as described in Example 2,position 4 (except without corona charging) and sample d (unquenched,annealed) was the same as described in Example 2, position 6 (exceptwithout corona charging). All web samples were studied by the method ofTSDC Test Procedure 1.

The resulting TSDC spectra are shown in FIG. 12. Charge densities can becalculated from each peak of the TSDC spectra by drawing a baselinebetween the minima on each side of a selected peak and integrating thearea under the peak. As illustrated in FIG. 12, TSDC spectra generallyshow a steeply increasing discharge current as the temperatureapproaches the melting point of the article tested.

Multiple samples of uncharged and annealed webs as described in Example7 were tested as described for Examples 11-15 for both unquenched(positions 2 and 6) and quenched (positions 3, 4, 5 and 6) webs. None ofthe unquenched webs had a charge density above 10 microcolombs persquare meter (μC/m²). Crystallinity indices of unannealed webs vs.charge density of the annealed, uncharged webs are plotted in FIG. 13a.FIG. 13a shows that unannealed webs having a relatively lowcrystallinity index generally have a higher charge density as determinedby TSDC Test Procedure 1.

DOP loading performance (in Min@Ch1) of the annealed and charged websvs. charge density of the annealed, uncharged webs are plotted in FIG.13b. FIG. 13b shows the quite surprising result that annealed, unchargedwebs having a charge density value above about 10 μC/m², as measured byTSDC Test Procedure 1 also have superior DOP loading performance aftercharging.

Examples 17 and 18

Examples 17 and 18 illustrate the TSDC spectra of quenched andunquenched annnealed, corona charged webs made without aperformance-enhancing additive. Quenched (a, b) and unquenched (a′, b′)webs were prepared as described in Example 4 except that nofluorochemical additive was present in the webs. TSDC spectra of theunpoled webs were acquired using Test Procedure 2 and are shown in FIG.14. The sign of the discharge current (either positive or negative) is afunction of the web's orientation in the TSC instrument relative to theorientation during corona charging.

Examples 19 and 20

Examples 19 and 20 illustrate the TSDC spectra of quenched andunquenched annnealed, corona charged webs made from a polymer andperformance-enhancing additive. Quenched (a, b) and unquenched (a′, b′)webs were prepared as described in Example 8, position 1. The webs werestudied by TSDC as described in TSDC Test Procedure 2. The results ofthe TSDC study are shown in FIG. 15. As part of the test procedure, themelting point of the article being tested is determined by DSC, and inthis case was found to be 159° C.

As shown in FIG. 15, when oriented to exhibit a positive dischargecurrent above about 110° C., the spectrum of the quenched web, a,exhibits a relatively narrow peak centered at about 137° C. Thisspectrum indicates that quenching causes a narrowing of the energydistribution of charge trapping sites in the annealed and charged web.In comparison, the spectrum of the unquenched web, a′, shows only a verybroad peak centered at a significantly lower temperature (about 120°C.), indicating a relatively broad distribution of charge trapping siteenergy levels. Thus, inventive articles can exhibit the distinguishingcharacteristic of a current peak centered at about 15 to 30° C. belowthe melting point of the article when measured by TSDC Test Procedure 2.

As shown by the previously discussed DOP load testing results, webs madefrom quenched (or relatively low crystallinity) intermediates havegreatly enhanced DOP loading performance as compared with webs made fromunquenched (or relatively high crystallinity) intermediates. Thus, theinventors have surprisingly discovered a characteristic spectral feature(i.e., the current peak described above) that correlates with enhancedDOP loading performance.

Examples 20 and 21

Examples 20 and 21 show TSDC spectra of quenched (FIG. 16a) andunquenched (FIG. 16b) articles and illustrate spectral features that cancharacterize certain articles of the invention. These examples were thewebs described in Example 8, position 3 (quenched and unquenched). TSDCstudies were conducted as described in TSDC Test Procedure 3. Thearticles in FIG. 16a differ only in their poling times: a—1 minute, b—5minutes, c—10 minutes, and d—15 minutes. Similarly, the articles in FIG.16b differ only in their poling times: a′—1 minute, b′—5 minutes, c′—10minutes, and d′—15 minutes.

The TSDC spectra in FIG. 16a show peak widths at half height of 18(b),14(c), and 19(d) for poling times of 5, 10 and 15 minutes respectively.These three peaks have maxima at 140 or 141° C. In comparison, theunquenched comparative examples in FIG. 16b show peak widths at halfheight of 40 (b′), 32 (c′), and 34 (d′) for poling times of 5, 10 and 15minutes ° C., respectively, and peak maxima at 121, 132 and 136° C.,respectively. The superior loading performance of quenched articles isdiscussed above in relation to DOP load testing.

Thus, FIGS. 16a and 16 b and the DOP load testing show the surprisingdiscovery that articles characterized by TSDC peak widths below 30° C.(as measured by Test Procedure 3) correlate with superior oily mistloading performance. These results suggest that articles having anarrower distribution of charge trapping energy levels in the poledstate correlate with improved loading performance. Thus, more preferredarticles have peak widths of less than 25° C., and still more preferablyless than 20° C.

The data also show that, at least for polypropylene-containing articles,there is a correlation between peak position and loading performancewith preferred articles having peak positions at about 138 to 142° C.

Examples 22 and 23

Another TSDC data set was acquired for samples identically prepared andtested as described in Examples 20 and 21. Charge densities werecalculated for each testing condition as described in TSDC TestProcedure 4 and are tabulated in Table 10 and plotted in FIG. 17.

TABLE 10 Charge Density (μC/m²) vs. Poling Time Poling Time ChargeDensity (μC/m²) (minutes) Quenched Quenched Unquenched Unquenched 1 1.550.94 14.2 18.4 5 4.47 5.5 8.23 8.97 10 9.05 8.0 4.18 8.81 15 14.5 10.574.08 10.8

Comparing the charge densities of the quenched and unquenched articles,as measured by Test Procedure 4, with the corresponding DOP load testingsurprisingly shows a correlation between the change in charge density asthe article is poled and loading performance. As can be seen in FIG. 17,the quenched (superior loading performance) articles (dotted lines)exhibit increasing charge density as the article is poled for 1 to 10minutes. In contrast the unquenched (poorer loading performance)articles (solid lines) exhibit decreasing charge density over the samepoling period. Thus, a characteristic of preferred articles of theinvention is increasing charge density over 1 to 5 and/or 5 to 10minutes of poling time, as measured by TSDC test procedure 4.

All patents and patent applications mentioned herein are incorporated byreference as if set forth in full.

The invention can have various modifications and alterations, withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope thereof Accordingly, this inventionis not to be limited to the above examples but is to be controlled bythe limitations set forth in the following claims and any equivalentsthereof.

What is claimed:
 1. An electret article that comprises a polymer and aperformance-enhancing additive, wherein the article has a thermallystimulated discharge current (TSDC) spectrum exhibiting a peak having awidth at half height of less than about 30° C., as measured by TSDC testprocedure
 3. 2. The article of claim 1 wherein the performance-enhancingadditive comprises a fluorochemical, and wherein the article has athermally stimulated discharge current (TSDC) spectrum exhibiting a peakhaving a width at half height of less than about 25° C., as measured byTSDC test procedure
 3. 3. The article of claim 2 wherein the polymercontains polypropylene.
 4. The article of claim 3 being in the form offibers.
 5. The article of claim 3 wherein the performance-enhancingadditive is


6. The article of claim 3 wherein the performance-enhancing additive isselected from the group consisting of


7. The article of claim 3 comprising 95 to 99.5 weight percentpolypropylene and 0.5 to 5 weight percent fluorochemical.
 8. The articleof claim 4 wherein the fibers have a sheath-core structure wherein thesheath comprises 95 to 99.5 weight percent polypropylene and 0.5 to 5weight percent fluorochemical.
 9. An electret filter comprising thearticle of claim 4 and exhibiting an initial detectable DOP penetrationof less than 5% and an average Min@Ch1 of greater than 200 mg DOP asmeasured by DOP filter web loading test procedure
 1. 10. The filter ofclaim 9 exhibiting a pressure drop of less than 12 mm H₂O.
 11. Anelectret filter comprising the article of claim 1 and exhibiting aMin@Ch1 of greater than 500 mg DOP as measured by DOP filter web loadingtest procedure
 1. 12. An electret filter comprising the article of claim1 and exhibiting an initial detectable DOP penetration of less than 5%and a Min@Ch1 of about 800 to about 1000 mg DOP as measured by DOPfilter web loading test procedure
 1. 13. The electret article of claim 1being in the form of melt blown fibers.
 14. A nonwoven web that containsthe melt-blown fibers of claim
 13. 15. A respirator comprising thenonwoven web of claim 14 as a filter.
 16. Electronic equipmentcomprising the nonwoven web of claim 14 as a filter.
 17. The article ofclaim 2 wherein the polymer is selected from the group consisting ofpolypropylene, poly(4-methyl-1-pentene), linear low densitypolyethylene, polystyrene, polycarbonate, polyester, and combinationsthereof.
 18. The article of claim 1 having a thermally stimulateddischarge current (TSDC) spectrum exhibiting a peak having a width athalf height of less than about 20° C., as measured by TSDC testprocedure
 3. 19. The article of claim 2 having an increasing chargedensity over 1 to 5 minutes of poling time, as measured by TSDC testprocedure
 4. 20. The article of claim 1, wherein the article is madewithout exposure to gamma irradiation or other ionizing radiation. 21.The filter of claim 11, wherein the article is a nonwoven web.
 22. Anintermediate composition for making an electret filter, the compositioncomprising a nonwoven web of fibers comprised of polypropylene having acrystallinity index of less than 0.3 as measured by the ratio ofcrystalline peak intensity to total scattered intensity over the 6 to 36degree scattering angle range, and a fluorochemicalperformance-enhancing additive.
 23. The composition of claim 22, whereinthe crystallinity index is about 0 to 0.2.
 24. The intermediatecomposition of claim 22, wherein the composition is made withoutexposure to gamma irradiation or other ionizing radiation.
 25. Anelectret article that comprises a polymer and a performance-enhancingadditive, wherein an electret material in the article has a thermallystimulated discharge current (TSDC) spectrum exhibiting a peak at about15° C. to 30° C. below the melting temperature of the article asmeasured by TSDC test procedure
 2. 26. The article of claim 25 whereinthe performance-enhancing additive comprises a fluorochemical, andwherein the article has a thermally stimulated discharge current (TSDC)spectrum exhibiting a peak at about 15° C. to 25° C. below the meltingtemperature of the material, as measured by TSDC test procedure
 2. 27.The article of claim 25 wherein the polymer is polypropylene and thethermally stimulated discharge current (TSDC) spectrum exhibits a peakat about 130° C. to 140° C.
 28. An electret filter comprising thearticle of claim 25 and exhibiting a Min@Ch1 of greater than 500 mg DOPas measured by DOP filter web loading test procedure
 1. 29. The electretarticle of claim 25 being in the form of melt blown fibers.
 30. Anonwoven web that contains the melt-blown fibers of claim
 29. 31. Arespirator comprising the nonwoven web of claim 30 as a filter.
 32. Anelectret filter comprising an electret article that comprises a polymerand a performance-enhancing fluorochemical additive, wherein the articlehas increasing charge density over 5 to 10 minutes of poling time, asmeasured by TSDC test procedure 4; and exhibiting a Min@Ch1 of greaterthan 500 mg DOP as measured by DOP filter web loading test procedure 1.33. The electret article of claim 32 having increasing charge densityover 5 to 10 minutes of poling time, as measured by TSDC test procedure4.
 34. The article of claim 32 wherein the performance-enhancingadditive is a fluorochemical.
 35. An electret filter comprising thearticle of claim 34 and exhibiting a Min@Ch1 of greater than 500 mg DOPas measured by DOP filter web loading test procedure
 1. 36. The electretfilter of claim 32, wherein the electret article comprises melt blownfibers.
 37. A nonwoven web that contains the melt-blown fibers of claim36.
 38. The filter of claim 32, wherein the article is a nonwoven web.39. An intermediate composition for making an electret filter, thecomposition comprising a nonwoven web of fibers comprised ofpolypropylene and a performance-enhancing additive and having a chargedensity of at least about 10 microcolombs per square meter (μC/m²) whentested according to TSDC test procedure
 1. 40. The intermediatecomposition of claim 39 wherein the performance-enhancing additive is afluorochemical.
 41. The intermediate composition of claim 40, whereinthe polymer comprises polypropylene, and the composition has acrystallinity index of less than 0.3 as measured by the ratio ofcrystalline peak intensity to total scattered intensity over the 6 to 36degree scattering angle range.
 42. The intermediate composition of claim39, wherein the composition is made without exposure to gammairradiation or other ionizing radiation.
 43. The intermediatecomposition of claim 41, wherein the crystallinity index is less than0.2, as measured by the ratio of crystalline peak intensity to totalscattered intensity over the 6 to 35 degree scattering angle range.